Taken in May 1963, this is the
first photograph of the F-105F, a U. S. Air Force
two-seat supersonic tactical fighter produced by Republic
Aviation Corporation. The plane is designed to carry
4,000 possible combinations of nuclear and conventional
weapons at speeds up to 1,400 m.p.h.

A British Vulcan bomber displays
the new Blue Steel air-to-surface missile attached to its
underside during a fly-by for the press in February 1963.
Designed as standard equipment for the Vulcan Mk. 2, the
Blue Steel uses liquid propellants to guide its
megaton-range nuclear warhead.

The X-21A, an experimental U. S.
Air Force plane, on its maiden flight from the Northrop
Corp. factory at Hawthorne, California, to Edwards Air
Force Base, on April 18, 1963. The plane is designed to
"inhale" air through razor-thin wing slots to
reduce friction drag.